By Larry Hotz, All Denver Real Estate, Senior Editor
This Denver area family died in Aspen from carbon monoxide poisoning
Every seller of every home in the state of Colorado must now install carbon monoxide detectors within 15 feet of every bedroom.
Current monoxide detectors have always been a good idea because they are a first alert against the invisible, odorless gas that can kill people if a furnace should fail. In addition to being a good, common sense idea, it is now the law of the land in the state of Colorado whenever any home is sold.
It can be a new home. He can be a resale home. It can be listed by real estate broker in the Denver MLS. Or, it can be sold by an owner without a broker. It doesn’t matter. A lot is that every seller must install these carbon monoxide detectors in or near every bedroom. It doesn’t even matter if the bedroom is in the basement and not used as a bedroom. It has a closet for clothes, that room must have a carbon monoxide detector.
This law went into effect last July. Before that, several sensational news stories were carried by local media in which whole families were killed by carbon monoxide gas when they didn’t realize a furnace had failed. These tragedies usually occurred at night while the unknowning victims were asleep. It seems that mainly children died because a smaller amount of the gas would prove to be fatal. But the gas can kill anyone with long enough exposure. Even a short exposure can result in nausea and hospitalization.
This highly rated carbon monoxide detector sells for under $60. Others sell for less than $25.
Sellers can purchase carbon monoxide detectors at any local hardware store, Home Depot or Lowe’s. But the cheapest carbon monoxide detectors are available on the Internet at websites such as Detectors and Alarms. But, first you might want to check out reviews of the best carbon monoxide detectors.
When a seller lists a home for sale, it’s a good idea to install the detectors at that time. I’ve had a couple closings in which the final walk-through revealed that the carbon monoxide detectors were not yet installed. In one case it nearly delayed the closing. So it is in the seller’s best interest to install those detectors right away when listing a home for sale.
Sometimes, sellers or brokers think it is acceptable to only provide the new detectors at the closing table without having them installed. That’s not what the law says. So, again, it’s in the seller’s best interest to install those carbon monoxide detectors go for the home is placed under contract for sale.
Carbon monoxide detectors must be installed in the house for safety. Good that you had referred “Consumer Research’s website” in order to understand which are the best detectors currently available in the market. I think house owners should buy the best quality detectors and install it as how law suggests…Thank you Larry for such a valuable blog post..
I purchased a 2 bedroom home on may 31, 2012 but did not realize there are no carbon monoxide detectors. The house has attached garage & 2 bedrooms. Can I still require the seller to purchase detectors for me?
The house is in Colorado Springs. The seller was a realtor from Parker, Colorado.
Thank you,
Joe
You may wish to contact the Seller or call an attorney or call the Colorado Real Estate Commission for advice.
I can’t stress hard egnuoh that everyone should have a CO detector as well. My daughter and granddaughter lived in an apartment with a gas heater and suffered CO “poisoning” due to an improperly burning/combusting pilot light. It took two and a half months to figure out what was causing the excruciating headaches and other symptoms. Eight doctors couldn’t figure it out. Normal output should be 0 parts per million. Hers was 215. We are very blessed and fortunate. The exposure ended almost four years ago and she’s regained almost all of her brain functions, mostly in the executive function and memory areas. She’s not where she was pre-exposure, but she’s getting better all the time. Healing takes a very long time for Traumatic Brain Injuries. It’s a wait and see game with my granddaughter. Little brains can compensate for a lot. Everyone should have a carbon monoxide detector. The best ones, and they’re not that expensive, are the ones that give a numerical readout. I’ll get down off my soapbox now.
The state legislature passed the law this year after several high profile deaths due to carbon-monoxide poisoning, including a Denver family that died in a vacation home in Aspen last Thanksgiving.